Circular knitting machine



Oct. 25, 1932. G. F. WAGNER 1,884,420

CIRCULAR" KNITTING MACHINE Filed July 29. 1929 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 l Patented Oct. 25, 1932 UNITEDy STATES GOTTLOB FRIEDRICH WAGNER, OF LIMBACH, GERMANY CIRCULAR KNITTING MACHINE .Application led July 29, 1929, Serial No.

This invention comprises improvements in circular knitting machines and has for its object toprovide an improved and simplified construction of machine which will operate to produce knitted fabric more expeditiously than machines heretofore employed or proposed.

l According to the present invention aI circular knitting machine is provided comprislo ing a needle-carrying disc, needles secured to the periphery of said disc, means for imparting a rocking motion to said disc, said rocking means producing a tilting off said disc progressively round the needle circle, and

15 said rocking disc being retained from rotary movement.

Additionally sinker members are employed so mounted as to be displaced radially relatively to the rocking disc, said sinken meml bers being operated by cam means so as to eect stitch formation progressively round the circularv row of needles.

One or more rows of thread guides may be allocated to the needle row. Each row 25 of guides (where a plurality of rows are used) may either be continuously rotated in vthe same direction round the needles or may y move in alternating directions in any desired working sequence. If a plurality of rows of guides are provided, their guides must be so arranged that it shall be possible to attend to both eye-needle rows between them.

The description is illustrated by an example of carrying out the invention.

Fig. 1 shows a vertical axial ysection through the principal parts of the machine.

Figs. 2-6 illustrate several working positions of the knitting members.

ln one convenient method of carrying out the invention a stationary machine frame 1 carries a bearing pin 2, on which a sleeve 3 is rotatably mounted. To this sleeveis connected a driving gear wheel 4 by any suitable i@ a pin 8 preventing any rotary movement of 381,822, and in Germany August 3, 1988.

the disc. To this end, the pin 8 is rigidly carried from the bearer pin 2 by means of a bracket'9. The pin 8 also engages either directly or by meansfor` a slide block in a hole or slot 10- in the\disc 7. The said disc 7 is supported on a shoulder 11 of the sleeve 3 and is secured above by'a stop-ring 12.v From the foregoing, it will be appreciated that as the sleeve 3 is rotated, the disc 7 is made to execute a rocking motion of such a nature that one part of its peripheral edge is always disposed higher than the diametrically opposite part and so thatthe part thus elevated moves round according to the speed of rotationl of the sleeve 3, without the disc 05 I 7 inthe meantime carrying out any rotating movement. Experience has now shown that in this way it is very easy to make the bush rotate 1,500 times per minute without any fear of disturbances.

To the outer edge of the .disc 7 are fixed the hook or bearded needles 15, in any suitable manner. This may, for instance, be effected by washers 16 and screws 17. The

needles share the rocking movements of 75rk the disc 7, so that in their vertical position j" they are practically moved onl upwards an downwards. Their slightoscillatory devia. tions within the plane lying radiall to the axis of the pin 2 are only of secon ary im- 80 portance so far as the knitting operations are concerned. f

The disc 7 is surrounded by an annular ring 20, in which are mounted sinkers 21 movable radially to the axis of the pin 2 by means 5 of downwardly directed projections 24. The ring 2O is carried by Vsupports 22 which are secured on bearer-arms 23, while the latter are held by the machine frame 1. The ring 20 is retained from movement, the operation 90 of the sinkers 21 being effected by the engagementof the projections 24 with the groove of a cam ring 25. The cam groove in the ring 25 may be formed by hardened pieces 26, 27, secured to said ring. The ring 25 `bears 'p5 against the under side of the ring 20, and is carried by supports 28 of a. disc 29, which may be wheel-shaped and rigidly connected with the wheel 4 so as to rotate along with the latter. In this way perfect co-operation of the sinkers 21 with the needles 15 is ensured. The machine possesses no special needle presser, in place of which, press blades 35 are fitted in any suitable manner to the sinkers as shown' in Figs. 2-6. In addition, the sinkers have three throats 36, 37 and 38 and four nose pieces 39, 40, 41 and 42, the functions of which will be obvious from the hereinafter described operation of the machine.

On the upper side of ring 2O is rotatably lnounted a further ring 30 which carries the row or series of thread guides 31. This ring, by any known means `has imparted to it a rotary motion of such a nature that the thread guides co-operate with the sinkers and needles in known manner, the guides being either always rotated continuously in the same direction or being driven in alternating varying directions.

Thus the ring 30 carrying the thread guides 31 may be supported by bars or brackets A secured to a toothed ring B mounted for rotation at the base of the machine frame 1 and arranged to be turned by a worm D receiving power from any suitable source.

A second row 32 of thread guides is secured to a ring 33, which is supported and driven in any suitable manner. Thusthe ring 33 is carried by. depending bars vor brackets A secured to a toothed ring B carried by brackets C secured to a fixed upper part H of the machine frame. The toothed ring B is rotated by worm wheel D receiving 1 power from any suitable source. The motion of the guides 32 is usually ina direction opposite to that of the guides 31.

The guides 31 are preferably arranged horizontally and the guides 32 suspended vertically. This arrangement ensures that a sufficient open space remains between the guides 31 and 32. For this reason also the threadfeed to the guides 31 takes place from the side and to guides 32 almost vertically from above.

The operation of the machine vwill now be explained, only those knitting mechanisms being considered which, on commencing observations, occupy with respect to each other the positions shown in Fig. 2. The needle 15 has then reached its lowest position wherein the finished work 45 is on the bottom sinker nose piece 39 and a stitch appertaining to the row of stitches last formed extends fromthe hook of needle. The sinkers 21 are pushed forward so far that the finished work engages in the lower throat 36 and in this position the closing of the' stitches I takes place.

As a result of the rotation of the sleeve 3 and the rocking motion of the disc 7 produced thereby the needle 15 under consideration begins its upwardmotion. At the same time sinkers 21 move back slightly i. e. farther from the middle of disc 7, so that the Work 45 under the tension of the threads coming from guides 31 and 32 is drawn upwards from the throat 36 and bears upwards against nose piece 41 (Fig. 3). The sinker 21, as shown in Fig. 4, now moves forward again i. e. towards the centre of the disc 7, so that the work passes into the centre throat 37 which is deeper than the other throats 36 and 38. The threads from guides 31 and 32 now lie in the upper throat 38 and are displaced by the latter, as the sinkers 21 move forward in' such a way that they surround or lap the shank of the needles. The needles 15 have in the meantime reached their highest position and then commenced their downward movement. In so doing their beards first take the newly laid threads and then come into contact with. the press-blades 35, by which the beards are pressed as the needles again move downward.

rlhis position is shown in Fig. 5. Then follows the take-up, so that as the needles 15 descend again, the throw-off or knock over can be effected, as represented in Fig. 6. Afterwards the sinkers 21 move in such a manner that the finished work takes its place in the lower throat 36 as shown in Fig. 2.

The operation just described iscompleted in connection with each needle and the sinker associated therewith during one revolution of the sleeve 3, but as the needles and sinkers occupy different relative positions at the various points vof the needle circle, it follows that the dierent working phases in the circuit of the stitch formation are always present simultaneously, though in continuous alternation at each separate position. Hence the continuous operation of the machine will be easily understood as weli as the progressive stitch formation which renders it possible for the machine to work very rapidly. f.

The guides are thereby moved continuously forward and if there are several rows of guides in use, their movements will be in opposite directions to each other. Any displacement of the guide row laterally of the needles is superfiuous, as this purpose is served by the uppermost throats of the sinkcrs which thus effect a closing-in', pressing forward and laying of the threads. The machine just described renders only three operating movements necessary, first, the rota fion of the sleeve 3 to produce the rocking movement of the disc 7 and at the same time .for the operation of the sinkers 21 by means of the uniformly rotating cam-disc 25.

the upper thread reel is suspended from a ring E; carried by brackets F, which ring E and the thread reel that it carries, is rotated by an arm G projecting laterally from the bracket or arm A. a

The point at which the axis of the disc 7 intersects the axis of the center pin 2 should lie on a horizontal level with the throats 38 of the sinkers 21.

1. A circular knitting machine comprising a needle-carrying disc, needles secured in fixed relation to the periphery of the said disc and extending approximately parallel with its axis of said disc, means for imparting a rocking motion to said disc, said rocking means producing a tilting of said disc progressively round the needle circle, and means for restraining said rocking disc from rotary movement. f Y

2. A circular knitting machine comprising a needle-carrying disc, needles secured to the periphery of said disc, means for imparting a rocking motion to said disc, said rocking means producing a tiltin of said disc progressively round the nee le circle,

said rocking dise being retained from rotary movement, sinkers operating in conjunction with the needles, cams operating said s inkers so as to displace sameradially of the axis of the rocking disc and means for moving said cams, said sinkers operating to eifect loop formation progressively around the circle of needles.

3. A circular knitting machine com risin a needle-carrying disc, needles secure to th periphery of said disc, means for imparting a rocking mot-ion to said disc,said rocking means producing a `tilting of said disc progressively round the needle circle, said rocking disc being retained from rotary movement, sinkers operating in conjunctionwith the needles,'cams operating said sinkers so as to displace same radially of the axis of the rocking disc, means for moving the cams, saidsinkers operating to effect loop formation progressively around they lcircle of needles, a circular row of `thread guides around the needle circle, means for feeding thread to said guides, carrier means for said guides and means for transmitting rotary movement to said carrier means so as to rotate the guides relatively to the needles.

4. A circular knitting machine comprising a needle-carrying disc, needles secured to the periphery of said disc, means for imparting a rocking motion to said disc, said rocking means producing a tilting of said disc progressively round the needle circle, said rockmg disc being retained from rota movement, sinkers operating in conjunctlon with the needles, rotating cams operating said sinkers so as to displace same radially of the axis of the rocking disc and said snkersoperating to elect loop formation progres- ,means for imparting a rocking movement to the disc, said rocking movement producing a tilting of the disc progressively round the periphery thereof so as to effect vertical reciprocation of the needles in succession, means for retaining the disc from rotary movement, a circular row of sinkers around the needles, cams and means that move them operating said sinkers to displace same radially of the needle carrying disc, each sinker having three throats arranged one above the other,.a. circular row of thread guides functioning to feed thread to the needles, means for transmitting rotary mption tothe guides relativelyto the needles, a presser element Y carried by each sinker and operating to press the needle beard at the forward or inner movement of the sinker.

6. A circular knitting machine comprising a needle-carrying disc, needles secured to the periphery of said disc, means for imparting a rocking motion 'to said disc, said rocking means producing a tilting` of said disc progressively round the needle circle, said rocking disc being retained from rotary movement, sinkers operating in conjunction with the needles, rotatin that move them, operating said sinkers so as to displace same radially of the axis of the rocking disc, said sinlrers operating to eii'ect loop formation progressively around the circle of needles, two rows of thread guides located around and concentric with the needle circle, means for feeding thread to said guides, means for transmitting rotary movement to said guides around the needle circle, the thread from both rows of guides being'fed simultaneously to the needles, and said rows of guides and lalso the thread supplies thereto being so spaced from each other as to render the needles accessible between same.

GOTTLOB FRIEDRICH WAGNER.

cams and means Y 

